A First Timer’s Honest Thoughts on Nuuly
Image Courtesy: Hannah King
Let's go back in time to about three weeks ago when I was scrambling to decide what I wanted to wear on Spring Break. I knew I wanted one or two new dresses to wear over the break, but I couldn’t find any with the right balance of longevity and price. I spent a copious amount of time (more than I am proud to admit) on every website imaginable, trying to find a showstopper. I ended up finding two that I loved, but with the hefty tag of $150 each – and for a college girl on a budget, that wasn’t going to work.
It was like the algorithm knew I needed help, and on that same day on my TikTok, I saw ads for Nuuly. I have always heard of girls using rental services, such as Fashion Pass, Nuuly and Rent the Runway, but I had never been super interested in trying it myself. I did some digging and found out that for just $85, I could get six items for Spring Break and I wouldn’t even have to dry clean or wash them. Six items for a fraction of the price of one of the other dresses I had found- I was sold!
What I loved about Nuuly was that I was able to scroll and search through their offerings before entering my payment information. Before deciding that this was the route I wanted to go, I was able to look and see if there were pieces that met my stylistic needs for the occasions they would be worn. Once I had glanced through most of their pages, I decided to enter my information and get started. I think that the first month of Nuuly is likely the hardest because you start from scratch. Nuuly has thousands of items on its website, and to be honest, it was very overwhelming to try and sort through all of them. The best advice I was given was to sort by style, brand, color, size, and occasion. I still ended up going through almost 100 pages of items, but it was much easier once I decided exactly what items I needed. After two days of sorting, editing and reading reviews, I finally placed my order.
Here is where I think Nuuly’s greatest strength lies – shipping. I ordered my Nuuly on a Wednesday evening, and it was at my doorstep by Saturday morning. I was blown away by how fast it came and the transparency during the shipping process. It felt like Christmas morning as I opened up my items and tried them on. All of the items fit well and completed my vision for the looks I had in mind. My one issue was that a pair of shorts that I had ordered were missing their belt. Obviously, this was a bit disappointing, so I reached out to customer service. This is another huge strength of Nuuly’s. Their customer service was impeccable; they were so kind and apologetic, and within two days, they shipped me the missing belt free of charge. I have also heard of people getting bonus items and discounts when there are errors or replacements. As a customer, this is a huge part of my brand loyalty criteria, as I want a company that cares about its consumers and wants to help when they make mistakes.
Overall, I would definitely recommend Nuuly to any college-age fashion consumer. If you have multiple occasions or events or even just enjoy dressing up and trying new brands, I think that rental services are a great option. Most of the items I rented retail for anywhere between $75-$300, and I got to wear them for below $100. I had been hesitant to try Nuuly for the past few years because I worried about the complications of the process of renting, shipping and returning. Still, I can confidently say that Nuuly was the right choice for me this month, and I will be continuing to use it through the end of the school year! Happy Shopping!
Strike Out,
Hannah King
Editor: Maddie Launer
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